The present invention relates to a runner with line tensioning capabilities for linking to a line installed movably to a guide rail used for opening and closing electrically-opened and closed type curtains, etc., holding curtains to the guide rail, and arranged along the guide rail in a form of a loop and a guide rail for curtains using the runner. The present invention also relates to a guide rail for electrically-opened and closed type curtains particularly compact and convenient for transportation and carrying at site. In addition, the present invention relates to a guide rail for manually opened and closed type curtains for manually opening and closing the curtain.
To a guide rail used for electrically-opened and closed curtains, etc., a string that serves as a line for opening and closing a curtain is wound around pulleys arranged on both ends of the guide rail and tensioned in a form of loop, and the string is normally and reversely moved by normally and reversely driving a motor linked to the pulley on one end to open and close the curtain linked to the string.
When this kind of curtain is repeatedly used, the string becomes loose due to wear in the string and changes in temperature and humidity of the surrounding environment, and it is inevitable that the string slacks.
When slack is generated in the string, even if the curtain open/close switch is turned on to drive the motor, slipage occurs between the pulley l-inked to the motor and the string, the pulley idles, the curtain is unable to be opened and closed, or even if it can be opened or closed, time-lag is generated between when the curtain open/close switch is turned on and when the curtain actually begins to open or close. In addition, there is an inconvenience in that the slackened portion of the string hangs down from the guide rail and is visible from outside, which looks ugly.
To counteract this situation, there proposed is a device which links the string For opening and closing the curtain to the curtain, and imparts string stretching capabilities to the runner for securing the curtain to the guide rail, in particular, so-called leading runner for securing the head part of the curtain (Japanese Utility Model Application laid-Open No. 2-6584 (1990), and Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 3-113679 (1991)).
In the leading runner disclosed in the above utility model applications, there are an adjusting bolt and a bracket that moves longitudinally by rotation of the adjusting bolt on the side of the leading runner, and by connecting both ends of the string to this bracket, the bracket is moved reversely by rotating the adjusting bolt manually with a screwdriver when any slackness occurs in the string, and the string slackness is absorbed.
In the conventional leading runner as described above, since every time slackness occurs in the string, the adjusting bolt must be rotated manually with a screwdriver to remove the slackness, it has problems of troublesome operation and bulkiness because of the bracket and the adjusting bolt for linking the string, as well as increased cost due to the increased number of parts for the leading runner.
The electrically opened and closed type curtains are used not only for homes but also buildings, etc. particularly with wide windows, but unlike the cases of manually opened and closed type, it is necessary to mount an electrically-operated motor, a pulley, a winch, leading runners, a string to link across these, etc. Since, in particular, it is essential to provide proper tension to the string and the operation efficiency is poor to carry out these operations at site, the parts described above are assembled to the guide rail at the time of shipment from the plant.
However, in the case of the curtain to be set with a large window, the guide rail becomes long, creating another problem in that it is not easy to transport the guide rail to the site for setting as assembled and to carry out installation.
In addition, the guide rail for manually opened and closed type curtains is constructed by slidably fitting a plurality of freely moving runners to the guide rail body with an inverted U-letter cross-section, to these freely moving runners, the top end portions of the left and right curtains are hung via hooks, and the left and right curtains are opened and closed individually by holding the right and left curtains directly by hand or by using the pulling string or button equipped to the top portion of the curtains.
However, in above-mentioned guide rail, since a plurality of freely moving runners are simply slidably fitted, to which one or two curtains are hung, when these are opened or closed, the curtains must be moved from one side to the other side or from the window center to the right and left sides directly by hand or with pulling string or button in hand, causing a problem in that the operation is extremely troublesome in the case of long curtains.